FIAE: Chapter 14

Report cards are similar to how a teacher should format their grade book. A teachers grade book needs to provide some sort of representation of a students overall achievements on a given assignment. I liked the idea of providing a key or legend on the report card to provide information on a certain comment or grade so that there are not misunderstandings. Standards and benchmarks should be the main focus on a report card so that it will show where a student is doing well and what they should be focusing on a little more. I noticed that the report cards used as examples used a 4 point scale to provide the grade which now that I see the four point scale in effect it really seems like it could be a better grading method. The four point scale does lead away from worrying about exact grades and letters. Also I think that it is important that as a teacher I provide feedback on the report card as well even if it does take more time on my part, written feedback can usually be the best especially when side by side with a grade.

FIAE: Chapter 13

To be honest, as of now, I haven't thought much about how to organize a grade book. It is going to be an important aspect in my over all grading in general. So far I don't really understand some of the formats for a grade book that this chapter has provided because I haven't really had much, well any, experience using a grade book. I would have to see one and use one first hand in order to really understand and choose which way would be best for given situations in differentiated instruction. But one thing that I did find to be important when formatting a grade book is that assignments should be given more then one grade for different aspects of that one assignment, because it could include writing or presenting or showing different knowledge's. In this way it will allow for a better idea of how a student is doing in that one area in its different ways. Organizing a grade book that can include feedback from simple numbers and letters is what a teacher should aim for because then the grades will be useful to the teacher, students, and parents.

FIAE: Chapter 12

This chapter I found that I could really relate to, where it deals with grading scales. The most popular are the 4 point scale and the 100 point scale. While I was in school I always had the 100 point scale, that was what I was used to having my teachers grade me by, and it is what I understood. Then my sophomore year of school some teachers started using the 4 point scale and I did not like it at all, because I didn't really understand it. When I started reading this chapter I automatically thought that I would prefer to use the 100 point scale as a teacher. But then as I read on I became convinced otherwise. The 100 point scale leaves room for a minus or plus letter translation, and the minus can be very discouraging for a student. The four point scale's allow students to understand what level they are at in their learning and focus less on a grade. The 100 point scale allows for a lot of room for different kinds of grades, too many, and the four point scale allows for an understanding of where the student is at, not down to an exact number. The focus is on learning and a four point scale puts the focus more on learning.

FIAE: Chapter 11

This chapter deals with specific issues a teacher may encounter when it comes to grading and provides solutions or suggestions for these problems. The first problem is the big zero burning in a grade book which can really be the downfall of a student, with just one zero. It is suggested that a zero should be replaced by a 60 for fairness, so that it won't completely ruin a students overall grade. They provide many convincing arguments for replacing a sixty with a zero, and the most convincing of all is that all grades including A,B,C and D have a range of about ten points, but then an F has a sixty point range, with this they had me convinced from the beginning of the chapter because I never thought of that before. If I do use this method as a teacher I just need to be sure that students do not take advantage of this. Next was dealing with gifted students where basically when grading them it is important to show the highest grade that they have obtained in a higher level class. Then it goes on to state that weighting grades is basically not a good idea which I completely agree with because it is not a good reflection of the students mastery. Grading is supposed to show not just a letter but it should provide some sort of feedback in a way and provide a good snapshot of where a student is at in their learning.

FIAE: Chapter 10

Letting kids redo assignments is something that I believe in and would want to allow my own students. But it can really be a risky thing because some students may just do bad on an assignment because they know they will be able to make it up, determining those students from the rest who tried and really should make it up is going to be difficult. Redoing an assignment does take extra time and effort on top of that that they already had to do to begin with so if they want to redo it then it should be allowed. As a teacher I will have to make sure that any assignments such as tests will have to have a different redo assignment with similar but different questions. It makes sens that they should be able to make it up to the full percentage, because if education is all about mastery then they should be able to improve and as they do their mastery in a subject will too. It would be pointless to redo an assignment if you could only get a few point higher, if they are going to take the time to do it then they should be able to get a perfect score if that is what they deserve in the end. These chapters have really helped me to understand that school is about mastering a given subject or topic and students should be given all kinds of chances to improve their knowledge.

FIAE: Chapter 9

So this chapter was a list of things a teacher should avoid when grading, I found some of them to be really interesting because when I was a student in high school my teachers would use these methods that this chapter warns teachers against. First of all it is important to give student second chances because not every student s going to master a topic at the same time. The section I liked the best was the portion on homework. As a teacher I don't know how much homework I am going to want to give and when and this chapter really helped me to decide this. Homework should only be given when a student has master a topic and is for further practice and understanding, homework should never be assigned when students are first learning a topic. I thought this was so true, kids have lives outside of school and when a teacher gives them homework on something they don't understand then it only stresses them out and doesn't help them to understand any better. As a teacher I do not want to give out too much homework because it can't really provide evidence on true mastery in a subject and anything that I teach is going to be important so I should teach it in class where the students can ask questions and receive help. Another important concept offered in this chapter was the plain fact that students should not be assessed in ways that do not show mastery meaning do not use words problems in math if a student is not good at reading and writing, this will only distract them from solving the actual problem. Also if I offer extra credit I shouldn't let it weigh in on their grade too much and it should be on a topic that is including in them showing mastery. All these things are great to remember when becoming a teacher.

FIAE: Chapter 8

This chapter really opened my eyes to the difficulties I may face as a teacher when it comes to grading. It is going to be so hard to decide what is going to contribute to that one grade letter such as participation, effort, and behavior. They are important factors in a students education, but they don't actually reflect how the student is doing in the course as a grade should do. Grades can be used both positively and negatively for a student. Low grades will not motivate a student to do better, but discourage them and make them want to give up. Good grades sometimes, but not always, make a student strive for more of that grade for a while. No matter how a student is doing it is important to get to know them a little better, know what is effecting them so that you can tailor their experiences in the classroom. This is where behavior, participation, and effort come into play. They should be only considered in a students mastery when they are contributing to it through their effort, behavior, or participation when these aspects are a positive thing. They should not hinder a students grade, and as a teacher if I want to incorporate participation into my grading then the students should be clear on it and it should have it's own designated grading scale separate from the grade that reflects their mastery in the course. But either way I am going to have to think how I will allow behavior, participation, a effort to effect the way that I grade my students.

FIAE: Chapter 7

This chapter discussed the controversies dealing with grades. Too much information is squeezed into one little letter grade. A grade is supposed to tell a student how they are doing, and give the feedback as what needs to be improved and what they are doing well on. But one little symbol doesn't really include all of that. I completely agree with this, as a student I had teachers that graded in very different ways, so I always had to know what was expected from each teacher. It would be great if all teachers thought alike in terms of grading but that's impossible. As a teacher I would like to try and shy away from grades as much as I can, at least not base by feedback and progress for a student on a letter. What is most important is getting each student to understand the material. Grades can vary so much that I don't think they are very reliable in deciding how well a student is doing in any given subject. It's not fair that different teachers grade differently and different students get graded differently, but what is fair is that the teacher can tailor each assignment to fit each student so they can reach a better understanding of the assignment. When using grades, I need to make sure it is very clear to all students what these letters mean and provide feedback along with them. Grades aren't what is important, feedback and understanding are.

MI: Chapter 5 Abstract and Synthesis

Abstract
Previous chapters have been explaining what MI is, and explains the fact that it should be used as a method of teaching but has yet to explain how exactly it can be applied in teaching. This chapter first goes on to explain that MI has been around for a while and still is not used all that much in the classroom. Because of this the book goes on to show and explain how MI can be applied in the classroom. The book provides examples for each intelligence and subject matters. Everything is school either deals with lecturing and reading and writing, which does not involve many of the intelligences. Teachers are stuck in old/traditional ways of teaching and some have a hard time breaking out of that. This chapter not only gives examples of ways MI can be used in the classroom and provides diagrams and graphic organizers that can be used by teachers to get them thinking on how they can incorporate MI into their classroom. As we know, graphic organizers can help both teachers and students when it comes to education.
Synthesis
As future teachers it seems that most of us are disappointed by the fact that MI is not all that new of a concept but yet not many teachers seem to be using it. The chapter makes it clear that even if a teacher is stuck in their traditional ways there is still a way to incorporate MI into their classroom while still using the traditional ways that they are used to. But for teachers like us, we are going to be completely new to the profession and open to incorporating new techniques and concepts into our teaching. MI allows for teaching to be versatile and effective for all learners so I don't think there is any new teacher out there that wouldn't be open to incorporating MI in their classroom. The examples are good for a beginning in each subject area but applying MI to all lessons could pose a challenge, so that is why it;s important to use the book as a starting point that introduces the idea of MI and then look for other ideas on the web of from other teachers lesson plans. The book is here to convince us as teachers that MI can be used as a great instructional tool, and now wants us to delve deeper into this understanding and look for MI resources all over outside of the book. There are plenty more books out there, videos, websites, and lesson plans to help teachers gather ideas on how to incorporate MI in the classroom. There is a lot of information out there for ideas on lesson plans to teach students what the multiple intelligences are but not many on lesson plans that actually incorporate MI because there is a big difference between the two. The book can be a starting point and our own creativity and ideas as teachers will help us to expand on MI in our classrooms.

MI: Chapter 12

This chapter ties MI to cognitive skills in memory, problem solving, misconceptions, and blooms taxonomy. I really like how MI was applied to memory because everyone remembers in a different way. Personally I have more of a visual memory especially when it comes to school, either i like to have a picture or diagram I can keep and store in my head, or just visualize the answer to a question in some way. During tests I like to close my eyes and I can visualize what I had studied. Problem solving can be used in a visual way as well by simply knowing a process and then envisioning it in your mind. Once a student is introduced to the different ways the intelligences can help them to better their memory or solve a problem they can use that approach themselves. The chapter then goes on to explain how students come out of school with so many simple misconceptions and these can be avoided by using the eight intelligences. This can be done by bringing learning to a higher level and not letting them run astray on the simple but most important ideas. Last is bloom's taxonomy directly relating to MI where they can work hand in hand to create a way to learn.

MI: Chapter 11

This chapter introduces the fact that MI can and should be applied to not only special education students but the teachers as well. In a typical scenario a special education teacher labels each student based on their disability and knows what that is and tries to work around it in a way so as to avoid anything that their disability may limit them from. An example would be a dyslexic student, who obviously has a hard time reading. What should be recognized is that their disability in most cases will relate to an intelligence, so then they are lacking in that intelligence. But the best thing to know is that because they are lacking in that intelligence doesn't mean that it cannot be bypassed by using a different intelligence to have a better understanding in the intelligence that their disorder hinders. Just because their disability limits them in one are doesn't mean they can;t strive in another. In most cases because their disability hinders one intelligence another intelligence will grow and become more in tune to make up for the other one. So basically, one intelligence and make up for another, or at least create another route around.

MI: Chapter 8

This chapter explained ways that the MI theory can be used for classroom management. This chapter really opened my eyes to some things I never would have thought of before, Mi theory can be applied to classroom management in very creative ways. The chapter gives examples for getting order in the classroom, a transition in the day, class rules, forming groups, and behavior. One way to apply MI to getting a classes attention would be to write "Silence please!" on the board, which is so simple and to the point but is something I would never have thought of and it ties in with the visual intelligence. I found the preparing for transitions to be childish and I don't think I would use them in a middle school or high school, the only one that I found to be useful was using music to signify a transition in the day which I think would be fun. I also liked the ideas for forming groups, they get the kids moving around and interacting with each other instead of simply just counting off. Behavior issues can be tricky but applying MI to deal with it can really help the student, especially when there are so many approaches to dealing with it through MI. MI can not only be used as a tool in teaching material but to simply manage a classroom, because just as the students learn differently they are going to listen and respond differently, so it helps to be creative and MI helps to do that.

UbD: Chapter 9

This chapter provides an example of the long term unit that all of us in class are working on. It was nice to see a finished one provided by the book so that I have an idea of what it will all look like when everything is said and done. I have a better understanding of what I am creating now that I have seen a finished product from chapter 9 and from the students that came in the other day. Also a provides a list of all the goals a teacher should strive for when trying to incorporate UbD and DI into their classroom. Like I said that chapter provides a finished product of a unit but then it goes on to explain how UbD and DI can be applied to that unit. It gives ideas for different options for the students on the given assignments. Then when the unit is in progress it is good to sit back and look for the indicators of UbD and DI in the classroom. One indicator as a teacher would be that the teacher is very helpful and keeps the students engaged. Also if the students know and can explain what they are doing is a good indicator as well. This chapter ties UbD and DI all together with what it is and how to apply it with examples.

UbD: Chapter 8

As the chapter begins it gives a great definition as to what the point to grading is, it states "we believe that the primary goal of grading and reporting is to communicate to important audiences, such as students and parents, high-quality feedback to support the learning process and encourage learner success" (129). This one sentence sums up a lot that the chapter goes on to explain which is that it is important to have a great understanding of all your students learning so that you can report what their strengths are and how they can improve in some areas. Grading is not all about numbers, it is about giving back information so that the student and teacher know how they are doing, and how to improve. Grading should have specific expectations, and the evidence that the grade is based on their learning and not simple mistakes. Also grading should not be solely based on numbers, because then the students are constantly striving to get good numbers, and not striving to learn, it can be two very different things. Grades should be there to encourage a student to want to learn. Teachers should use different ways to report back how a student is doing besides numbers, examples the book provides are checklists of essential skills, portfolios, or charting even.

UbD: Chapter 7

This chapter directly relates to what we are working on in class at the moment so I found i to be very useful. This chapter really gave me a better understanding of what we are doing and why. To begin with the essentials question in creating understanding are very important because they lead to smaller or larger areas of information that can be explored within a subject. Under the six facets of learning I really liked the example it showed of brainstorming for the six facets of learning. They were simple questions, but can be used to expand into a larger topic and lesson. Then came the WHERETO which is very important because it allows teachers to not only put together a lesson but as they are doing it makes them realize what the students will learn from it and how to go about doing that learning. This chapter helped me to "pull it all together" as one of the sub titles in the chapter states.

UbD: Chapter 6

This chapter was basically explaining the importance of using UbD in the classroom. First a teacher should start off by asking themselves questions about certain units. The teacher should question what the students are learning and maybe different ways of teaching the material to better suit a students needs once a unit takes off. The next step to better suit all students needs is to understand what is going to lead them to understand information and think at high levels, expand on basic concepts, allow for the student to interpret their own understanding of certain material, and let them know what is expected from them. Once these concepts are recognized by the teacher then they can move on to using UbD in the classroom and using the classroom as a tool for this. In the end it is easier to not only realize which students are similar in their learning needs but look for patterns to adjust to this. Then in the end allow flexibility within lesson plans to work around all students needs.

MI: Chapter 14

This chapter introduces the ninth intelligence that Gardner has come up with and is debating on whether it should be included with the others. He explains this intelligence as the way a person may try to interpret their life and what it means. I think it is very interesting that he would come up with an intelligence such as this. Every person tries to come to terms with death or love, and everyone defines it in their own way and has a different understanding of it. I think this intelligence doesn't really fit in with the other ones all that well. Especially when relating it to the classroom, I think it would be very difficult, because there really is no answer to some of the things this intelligence explores, it's more about personal identity and thoughts. I know the chapter gives ideas as to how to integrate it into the classroom, I still feel that this is more of a personal intelligence that should be left to each individual. The existential intelligence is too vague and undefined to really grasp within a classroom.

MI: Chapter 13

This chapter is just expanding on ways that MI can be incorporated through different applications. The three applications it explains are computer technology, cultural diversity, and career counseling. Computers aren't just for mathematical uses as some would imagine, but can be used to explore all the intelligences in many different ways. There are so many different software programs on a computer that can be linked to any of the intelligences, such as a paint program for spatial intelligence or to make videos which would be bodily-kinesthetic. Just the Internet alone allows for students to search for anything relating to any on of the eight intelligences. Culturally diverse populations may cause problems but if a teacher is to embrace it in the right way then many students can benefit from their diverse classrooms. It is important to know that all cultures use the eight intelligences but use them and value them in different ways. These differences need to be recognized and embraced. As for career counseling the eight intelligences can be used to help students understand what intelligences they like to use more and which they are good in and that can lead them down the road to the right career choice in their future.

MI: Chapter 7

This chapter begins by getting the reader to question if each intelligence is incorporated into the classroom. This is not in the normal sense that the book has been discussing, it's more questions about the classrooms atmosphere. I never thought of the classrooms atmosphere being based around the multiple intelligences, but the chapter provides interesting questions that I would probably never think to ask myself, especially not in the context of MI. The chapter goes on to explain a solution as to incorporating MI into the classroom atmosphere by providing designated centers for each intelligence. The organization of the room and where the students can get their resources and tools are important to the classroom atmosphere as a whole. There could be a reading nook with bookshelves, an area used as a stage to present and act on certain occasions. There are ideas for different activities relating to these different areas in the room. This chapter really helped me to understand that the classroom itself can be used as a tool to incorporate MI and activities that follow it.

MI: Chapter 6

Chapter 6 is a more in depth version of chapter 5. Like I said about chapter 5 there was a list for each intelligence giving ideas on how to incorporate that specific intelligence into the classroom. These ideas are explored and explained in depth in chapter 6. There were plenty of ideas that I could use as a teacher myself. Some of them were really obvious but just had to be put in that specific intelligence category to really make me think that journal writing is a use for linguistic intelligence or that a classroom theater would work for bodily-kinesthetic intelligence. This chapter provides a lot of great ideas to get a teacher headed in the MI direction because it can be really hard to devise something for each and every intelligence. My favorite one would be to have a pet in the classroom because I think that it could be so much fun for myself and for my students, not only could it teach my students responsibility in helping to take care of it but it really would create a great environment for the students as well. It would be fun to incorporate the class pet into lessons.

MI: Chapter 5

This chapter was mainly introducing the fact that MI instruction is not commonly used in the classroom. Teachers mainly stick to lecturing and writing on the board. There is a way to incorporate MI into the traditional teacher mode or you could go all the way with MI instruction and be really creative, it all depends on what the teacher is comfortable with. There is a big difference between a traditional teacher and a teacher who uses MI instruction to their advantage, but using MI involves creativity. I want to be that creative teacher who can incorporate as much MI instruction in the classroom because it is fun and it really reaches the kids and gets the motivated. The chapter provides a list of possible activities relating to each Multiple Intelligence, it provides many ideas to get a teacher going with incorporating MI into their classroom.

MI: Chapter 10

Chapter 1o Mi and Assessment provided information on how to include assessment using the eight intelligences. Throughout the other chapter the book was focusing on and pushing for an education where students are learning through their eight intelligences and focusing on the intelligences they are best at. So now it only makes sense to incorporate assessment that allows students to express their knowledge on a topic through the eight intelligences. Standardized tests limit students to simply writing, filling in the blanks and bubbles. Incorporating MI into assessments would allow students to be assessed through options and their intelligences, they could make a video or sing a song to express their knowledge. It would be crazy to teach kids how to learn based on the eight intelligences and then never assess them in that way. Some teachers need to get out of that old way of teaching where tests and assessments are always related to a pencil and paper.

FIAE: Chapter 6

This chapter really opened my eyes to how difficult creating a test may be, there is plenty to think about. First of all a teacher should not include unclear questions, where there may be many answers that could be right in one way or another, you do not want to confuse the student with the question itself. A student may get bored with a true and false test, instead include many different types of questions like multiple choice and short answer responses. Also make the test as simple as possible when it comes to the questions, if not much writing is needed for the response then avoid it by simply having them circle the answer. The test needs to be as clear and as organized as possible to avoid confusion. Also the answer should not be given away by a grammar clue. Including the students names and something about them into a test question can spice up the test, as well as some humor with puns relating to the subject. Lastly making the test easily gradable for the teacher is not always best for the students.

FIAE: Chapter 5

Chapter five was all about tiering, what it is and assessments that can go along with it. Tiering is a really big part of creating differentiation in the classroom. The book defines tiering as "we are primarily emphasizing the adjustments we make in assessments according to students' readiness levels" (56). There are going to be advanced students, grade level students, and early readiness students and on any given assignment tiers can be created to adjust to what the student is capable of, where it is challenging them just enough. A few examples of tiering assessments were a learning contract and RAFT(S). A learning contract is where that teacher and student come up with a contract of assignments and dates for completion, also there behavior tasks on there as well and consequences if the contract is not fulfilled. RAFT is where there is are columns from each RAFT (role, audience, format, topic) subject. The students picks one from each column to create a unique assignment for themselves. Both of these assessment are both creative and really allows the student to have some say over what they are doing in school, teiring not only allows for differentiation but for choices for the student as well.

FIAE: Chapter 4

There were three different types of assessment discussed in this chapter which were portfolios, rubrics, and student self assessment. A portfolio is good way to compile a students good work together as a way to see what they have learned. In this way the student gets to choose which works will go into the portfolio, whether it is a high grade or something they are proud of and in this way it is a reflection process for the student. Rubrics were talked about in depth in this chapter, because it is obviously one of the most common ways to assess a students work. A rubric lays down what needs to be done for a certain assignment and what is needed for a certain grade. Rubrics may allow students to focus on a certain level of achievement and not go for the highest one, which I thought to be very true. Last is simply having the student self-assess themselves where a rubric could be create to include both the teachers grade and the students grade for themselves. It may tell a teacher a lot by the grade that a student is willing to give himself.